Letters archive

Regarding the video assistant referee (VAR) system in football, how about adding a few rules about its use? For example, the on-field referee could only request VAR if they were really uncertain about a situation, not just to "make sure", and off-pitch officials could only give their opinion if the referee asked them for it …

Daisy Christodoulou's lament for the English Premier League under VAR shows that football administrators in the UK aren't cricket fans. Many major cricket matches have an off-field third umpire who is equipped with scientific monitoring systems, but who doesn't interfere unless one team appeals an on-field decision to them. Each team has a limit of …

We could do away with video reviews in sport if we framed the rules in terms of the officials' perception of events rather than the events themselves. The sport of race walking did just that when photography showed that the foul of "lifting" – losing contact with the ground – happened far more often than …

I really liked the article on the possible instability in the Higgs field that may end the universe at any moment. If we are doomed, we can at least take comfort in the fact that we won't have any prior warning or feel a thing, as the end will arrive at the speed of light, …

I think most of the criticism of Australia's effort to ban social media for people under 16 is an example of the proverb, "The best is the enemy of the good" ( 23 November, p 15 ). Certainly, this proposal provides opportunities for improvement, but in the absence of something better, it is good enough. …

I doubt that banning children from using social media will be effective. We would reap far more benefit by banning politicians from accessing or using it.

Future Chronicles imagines a time when we use seaweed to remove atmospheric carbon dioxide. But there would be impacts from growing and then sinking many million tonnes of seaweed to the ocean floor ( 9 November, p 22 ). At the surface, the seaweed would take up nutrients otherwise used by phytoplankton. The result would …

I agree with much of "Recipe for disaster", but find the GM food good/organic food bad thinking perverse. Given the ample evidence that high-input farming is degrading land and ecosystems, it would seem that we need to be looking at some version of "GM-enhanced organic growing" to create a truly sustainable system ( 16 November, …

Am I alone in finding the lack of investment in something as seemingly essential or highly beneficial as GM food crops far from astounding? When we consider the lack of meaningful investment in combating major problems such as water pollution, climate change and biodiversity loss, it comes as no surprise. If there is no quick …

You report research stating wing feathers originally augmented running in birds. In Tasmania, we have the endemic flightless Tasmanian native hen, or turbo chook. It is fleet of foot and earns its nickname from its supreme ability to rapidly run for cover when chased. The birds can also turn 90 degrees at pace by simply …